Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

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Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

Titebond glue is what I use with all my woodworking projects . Any good glue should do you a good job though as long as the joints are clean and tight fitting. Are you also planning on screwing , nailing or stapling the joints? Doing so will keep things tight together and give you a stronger joint.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

titebond II and titebond III are the ones most folks here use. There is plenty of argument for which is best. TBII is water resistant, while TBIII is waterproof. I like that the TBII is thicker, so it does run and drip as much as the TBIII. since my hives are eitehr painted or clear coat finished, the wood/glue won't be exposed to much water, so i think either will work just fine. Of course, the use of mechanical fasteners (nails, staples, screws...) is recommended.

The original gorilla glue is kinda nice because ot foams/expands to fill any imprefections in the joints. one downside, is that it can expand past the wood surface and not look "pretty" if that matters to you. The glue is also waterproof.

I have not used the gorilla glue wood glue. Their website claims it is water resistant. I suspect it is pretty similar in efficacy to the TBII.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

> Could you use a general wood glue found at the local Lowe's or Home Depot instead of Resin Glue from the manufacturer?

Lowes and HD both carry all the flavors of Titebond and Gorilla glue commonly used. "General wood glue" might include a product like Elmers Interior Wood Glue, which is really not a good choice for use in hives that are outdoors. Choose a type 2 or type 3 glue, or a poly glue like Gorilla Glue.

Use up the existing bottle of Gorilla Glue first. Titebond II is a very good glue choice at an affordable price. Locally it sells for half the price of Titebond III in gallon jugs. Unless your hives are submerged in water TBIII has no advantage over TBII.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

There is little practical difference between TB II and TBIII for water resistance.
The following is copied from titebond's website:

What is the difference between the ANSI/HPVA Type I and Type II water-resistance specification?

Both of these tests are conducted using 6” by 6” birch laminates glued together to make three-ply plywood. The test for Type I is clearly more stringent than Type II, and involves boiling the glue bonds and testing the specimens while they are wet.

Type I testing involves cutting the 6" by 6" assemblies into 1" by 3" specimens, boiling them for 4 hours, then baking the specimens in a 145°F oven for 20 hours. They are boiled for an additional 4 hours, then immediately cooled using running water. The specimens are sheared while wet, and the bonds must pass certain strength and wood failure requirements to pass the Type I specification.

Type II testing involves cutting the 6" by 6" assemblies into 2" by 5" specimens, soaking them for 4 hours, then baking the specimens in a 120°F oven for 19 hours. This is repeated for a total of three cycles, and the bonds must not delaminate to pass the Type II specification.

So unless you are going to put your finished boxes into boiling(real hot) wax/rosin tank, there is no reason not to just use the cheaper TBII.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

when i was a kid i yous to mix flower and a little water together, and glue toothpicks together to make litle log cabins and forts. THAT WAS NOT A GOOD GLUE why do you want to know of a glue that does not work ? when you clearly have glues that do work. JUST CURIOS

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

yes kind of. but your question was. and i quote ( has any one ever used a glue that did not work ) and i told ya. and now is probably a good time to use tite bond II. now i know we are talking about be hive construction. i was not implying any thing about you. just haveing a little fun. now as far as your 1 to 1 supirior mix compared to my inferior mix. yes i mix by volume 1 to 1 and it's just not as perfect as others.BUT my bees take it in and yours will too. now back to the glue. the next time we are both driveing down the road and see some one elses bee hives, we should stop, and ponder the posabilities of just what glue was used and as long as it's not a mix of flower and water. IT WILL BE ALRIGHT.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

Just my own experience:

In the late '70's I built my own bee boxes using rabbit joints, nails, and Elmers wood glue. I then painted each box with a couple of coats of exterior latex paint, making sure the joints were well covered.

The boxes started falling apart in about 3 years. The paint couldn't keep the moisture out of the joint, the glue failed due to the moisture, and the nails weren't enough by themselves to keep the joints tight. This was in relatively dry southern California. I quickly realized that not using a waterproof glue was a costly and easily avoided mistake by me.

With that experience in mind, I now use the most waterproof glue I can find, Tightbond III, and stainless steel ringshank nails. I don't mind paying a few extra cents per box for the peace of mind the overkill brings. But I am a hobbiest, so the extra expense is too small for me to worry about.

I have never used Gorilla Glue on a bee box, but I have used it in other applications, and my experience is that the glue gets brittle within a few years making the joint easy to crack. Which is a shame because I like how it expands to fill voids.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

Originally Posted by shinbone

Just my own experience:

In the late '70's I built my own bee boxes using rabbit joints, nails, and Elmers wood glue. ... the glue failed due to the moisture, and the nails weren't enough by themselves to keep the joints tight.

That's the kind of info I was fishing for. That, and now I won't try wheat paste, either.

Re: Hive Assembly Question? What Type of glue works and or what can be substituted ?

Thanks for everyone's input. While the debate was interesting the winner was Tightbond III. The latest comment provided some information concerning Gorilla glue and becoming brittle after a while this would be unacceptable. From the replies above Tightbond products have a large following and make the most sense when following others advice.